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No TMBC - 3 to 4 x 1 mile in 10k Pace

As we approach three months in lockdown, and almost three months without the fellowship of our beloved Thursday Morning Breakfast Crew, I thought it would be a good time to select on life, and on running, as if the were somewhat separate instead of metaphors for each other.

More than a hundred thousand of our fellows Americans have died of a terrible disease none of us had heard a few months ago. That toll is worse than all of the wars we have fought in the last 60 years, and despite desperate measures such as the lock downs - that toll continues to rise without a cure or vaccine in sight. At the same time, the economic devastation has been almost as bad, with tens of millions thrown into unemployment pr had their businesses close, including some of our fellow DCRRC runners. Under the circumstances, many of us have suffered anxiety and even depression, and for all we know, almost certainly some of our fellows have faced Covid 19.

At the same time, however, we see more and more acts of bravery and determination in the face of this enemy, and amazing acts of human kindness - including right here in our community its and even the running community. While I will not embarrass anyone by praising them overmuch, we all know doctors, nurses, police and other first responders amongst even our beloved Crew who are fighting the good fight and saving lives. Moreover, I am aware of individual acts of kindness in the community and even amongst our Crew, where people of reached out and helped others in need. We all commend you - both you on the front lines, and those working to assist in many quiet ways. That is how I know we will get through this - because we work together, in the Crew, in the Community, and in the Nation to overcome every adversity that life throws at us.

At the same time, many of us have also continued to do that thing that keeps us physically and emotionally fit - by running. Many of us have formed very tight knit groups that while smaller, are no less dedicated to each other - and our group has been lucky enough to run into many of you out on the roads - and, in a proper socially distant fashion, we've caught up and shared our stories. All of us seem to miss TMBC and DCRRC weekly runs, and many have missed competitions. Our hearts go out especially to many of you who trained so hard for a spring marathon, but were unable to actually compete. Some of you - often with the help of support crews of fellow DCRRC runners (all socially distant!) - have been able to run virtual marathons and other races, competing only against yourself and your goals, and we salute you - we even had a few PR's, which is amazing under the circumstances.

Some of us were even lucky enough to participate in the Club's fun run "1 Mile Challenge," including Paul, Mikela, Kyle, Liz, Will, Ze, Mark, Rodrigo, Rich, Andrew and new mom Katie, Jill, Keith and CaSandra. While it was not actually a competition, it gave some of us a chance to measure our fitness and compete against our selves after months of solitary or small group running, and even to check our times against others out on the roads somewhere. My favorite part were the many pictures posted of the participants, many of whose smiling faces we haven't seen in too long. I also loved the fact that we had two three-year olds participate! Links to the pictures and the time results are on the front page of the Club website.

Fortunately, I can tell from Strava and the many emails I have received that many of you are making the best of the situation by building your base, flexibility, and strength as we await things getting back to a more normal footing. The Club's leaders and coaches have begun discussions of what activities will look like on the other side. One TMBC runner made an excellent suggestion of breaking down group runs to much smaller, regular groups - perhaps the same ones that are already being used despite lockdown, and staggering start times. Luckily, we now know that transmission while exercising outdoor is extraordinarily difficult, and that at least is reason for some cautious optimism, We welcome the input of our members, and hope you all will share your thoughts and hopes. Your Club's leaders will take that all into consideration, along with the good advice of scientists and medical professionals, and will let you know as soon as we can.

In the meantime, your coaches are here for you - and your fellow teammates. If you need anything, please let us know - many of us are felling powerless and the chance to assist our friends and teammates would be a tonic!

With all of that in mind, we are going to keep it simple for tomorrow, as many of us are just acclimating to the heat and humidity, which finally showed up this past week and will be with us tomorrow. Since the Arlington tracks are still closed, and the Club has not resumed formal runs, I thought we'd return to this easy workout:

May 28, 2020 – NO TMBC ON THE TRACK – RUN ON YOUR OWN: 3 or 4 x 1 mile in 10K Pace, w/400m (or three minutes if that is easier) easy jogs in between. Since we have no track, do it by minutes – you should know your pace at the mile in a 10k, so run that or easier

As long as we do not have the tracks for precise measurements, and each other to help us push ourselves, these Thursday workouts will not be as varied as what we enjoy on the track, but they still will be nice way to maintain good fitness during these challenging times when there are no races, and probably none for a few more months. Still, you try to vary your workouts even in such times – not just for the physical benefits – they will help build strength and resiliency, but they will also help us psychologically as we have some small test of our ability – a little something different, and while not quite a race, these workouts are at least an opportunity to push a little to build that strength. As always, when running interval, Tempo or Speed work, please focus on running with the appropriate form – knees a bit higher, up on your toes, and core still while not crossing over with your arms.

NO TMBC - One Mile Virtual Race

Fellow Endorphin Junkies

This week we are going to encourage everyone to run the DCRRC Club One Mile Virtual Race Challenge instead of a separate TMBC workout. You can always add a little Tempo work after you get in your mile if only one mile of full out sprint is not workout enough!  :-) 

Details are on the Club website on the front page at . For those in good enough health to do the one mile virtual race, tomorrow will be a cooler May day - between the lower fifties and lower 60s, with strong wind gusts at time, but little chance of rain. The tracks are still closed, and any virtual will usually need to be done on the Custis/WO&D/Bluemont or other trails, but a virtual mile race can be done almost anywhere – and perhaps with all the traffic on the trails, your neighborhood streets would be safer – at least coronavirus-wise.

May 21, 2020 – NO TMBC – ON YOUR OWN: One Mile Virtual Race – but then you can throw in some jogging and Tempo if that is not enough.

If you've been doing the workouts this spring, or some variation, you should be able to handle a one-mile race. It is very important to focus on your form, getting up on your tows and lifting your knees. Leave a little bit for an all out sprint the last 200 to 400 meters to finish Strong!

And now the Coach Rich News!

Greetings all. The #dcrrc1milechallenge is on. Get out there and participate. 5:23 is the fastest so far but we have barely gotten started. dcroadrunners.org for current standings and photos.

The Broken Ladder Challenge Ladder is still in progress on day 31 with 2 men left fighting it out and about to start day 31. Just crazy. The ladies podium is complete and Liz Ozeki took the # 3 slot. Just phenomenal completing 25 days. On the 26th she had to get up at 3AM to head in for a 12+ shift at the hospital and decided discretion was the better part of valor and running a marathon after that and before midnight made no sense. Huge congrats to Liz! Her twin sister Thia was 1st OAF completing 27 days. I know you will get her at the next crazy challenge Liz!!! Plus, you of course still have marathon PR bragging right :)

Congrats to Ze Dagher for running a 5k on the track 2 weeks ago in a real nice 17:47!

Stay safe and happy running!

Coach Big Guy and Coach Rich will be out doing the Virtual One Mile Race at Some Point in the Next few days!